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Dual diagnosis is a term that is very easy to define, yet very difficult to treat. When you are suffering from dual diagnosis, what has essentially happened is that you are suffering from both a mental illness problem and a substance abuse problem. Over the course of this article, we will explain exactly what both of those are as well as delve into some of the treatment options that are available for people that have both of these problems. For now, it is sufficient for you to understand the basic definition of the term.

If you already have dual diagnosis and know exactly what it is, the good news is that you can get help for your condition right now. We are Sunset Malibu and we have one of the best treatment clinics out there for people that are suffering from a dual diagnosis condition. Our trained professionals not only have the expertise to know all of the treatments that are available for any possible combination of mental illness and substance abuse, but they also have the experience to know which situations call for which treatments. That is a rare combination in the clinics of California, but it is one that we proudly put on display. To give us a chance to prove our prowess, call Sunset Malibu at 1-800-332-9202.

Dual Diagnosis Mental Illness

As previously mentioned, dual diagnosis is by definition a combination of two different ailments. One of these is always a mental illness, so it is hard to define dual diagnosis without defining the term mental illness as well. A mental illness can be thought of as any illness that can affect what would otherwise be your normal mental abilities. Therefore, something like a concussion would not be considered a mental illness most of the time since it is a symptom that goes away. Something like depression on the other hand would be considered a mental illness because it fits the definition that was given above.

There are many other dual diagnosis clinics out there that claim to be able to help you with this problem because of their expertise with mental illness. Specifically, many of them will reference depression as their main selling point. While you might be tempted to go with them, especially if your mental illness is depression, take a good long look at what you would be getting if you did exactly that. You would not get any help for your substance abuse and therefore you would not really get any help for your two problem condition. Getting help for just one of the two problems is not enough. We can help you with both problems in the same treatment facility. Call Sunset Malibu today at 1-800-332-9202 to experience our dual diagnosis clinic for yourself.

Explaining Substance Abuse

Substance abuse is the second part of dual diagnosis. It is possible for a person to have other problems with their dual diagnosis, but this particular condition consists of a mental illness problem and a substance abuse problem. The former was explained in the previous section. The latter will be explained below.

When someone has a substance abuse problem, it means that they have an unhealthy addiction to a certain substance. The substance could be anything, although it is really the more immediately harmful substances that are usually considered substance abuse problems for the purposes of dual diagnosis. Many people are addicted to caffeine, but since caffeine is a relatively harmless stimulant most of the time, this does not usually get consideration as substance abuse. Substances like alcohol or drugs on the other hand are the prime cases of substance abuse. To learn more about what substance abuse is and what it is not, call Sunset Malibu today at 1-800-332-9202.

Treating Dual Diagnosis

When one is treating dual diagnosis, the main thing to be aware of is that for it to be an effective dual diagnosis treatment, it needs to be something that will work on both the mental illness and the substance abuse problems simultaneously. If you have a mental illness that is treated, the substance abuse could easily bring the mental illness back even after treatment has been successful (i.e. depression resurfacing due to an alcohol addiction). Similarly, if you get great treatment for you substance abuse but leave the mental illness alone, it could easily drive you back to substance abuse later (i.e. bipolar personality shifts recreating the drug addiction that you just got over).

Not many clinics actually get the importance of treating dual diagnosis components at the same time, but we certainly do. We understand this because we have seen so many other people mess up at different points. Ultimately, we were the ones that had to clean up the messes left by other clinics, something we really do not enjoy doing. Dual diagnosis absolutely has to be a single shot taking everything out, otherwise you could end up right where you started at the end of the day. To learn more about the methods we employ to tackle both the mental illness and substance abuse problems at the same time, call us at 1-800-332-9202.

Call Sunset Malibu Right Now

Sunset Malibu is a clinic that has it all when it comes to treating dual diagnosis patients. We have the experts in this field that have the ability to know everything about what has been done and what still needs to be done in terms of research in this area. We have the counselors that have oodles of experience. These are people that are ready day and night to help you get over your problems. Perhaps most of all though, we have the track record of successfully treating hundreds of different patients. Included amongst those patients are several really tough cases that we can guarantee were tougher than what you are facing right now. Know that we have handled cases like yours before and prevailed. We can do the same for you. Remember, we are only a phone call away when you decide that you are ready for treatment.

For additional information on the exclusive Dual Diagnosis program at Sunset Malibu, please visit our main Sunset Malibu page. For immediate assistance call Sunset Malibu anytime at 1-800-332-9202.